The 2014 Pork Quality Competition, held in conjunction with Prairie Livestock Expo in Winnipeg, attracted 36 entries from farms across the province.

The event which is held every two years in support of local, national and international charities chosen by the winners and local food banks, brings together pork producers to showcase their products.

This year's grand champion carcass was entered by Aspenheim Colony Farms at Bagot, Wellwood Colony Farms of Ninette entered the reserve champion carcass and Glenway Colony Farms of Dominion City claimed third.

Jason Care, the manager-auditor of Manitoba Hog Grading and one of the event judges, says criteria for the competition is designed to reflect what the processors are looking for.

Jason Care-Manitoba Hog Grading:

A lot of the entrants that do enter into the competition ship to the processors, whether it's Maple Leaf or Hylife or the provincial ones in the province.

They set up this competition to sort of mock what they would call the best pork that would be marketable in Manitoba so the guidelines are set to follow it on that and it's a judging of the loin, it's a judging of the backfat, the belly, the color of it so it's all levels that they set the criteria at and that's what we move forward with.

The biggest one is usually the loin.

They base it out of a loin, marbling because it's not very common to have a lot of marbling in pork.
In this competition when you look at these loins you see this increased marbling and that comes down to the genetics that we have here in Manitoba which the processors are really looking forward to.

Care notes all of the pork, a total of 9,000 pounds, will be donated to local food banks and just over $21,000 in prize money will be shared by charities chosen by the winners.

For a complete list of this year's winners visit prairielivestockexpo.ca.